Oct 4 Good morning, RVA: Violence, guns, and monuments

Good morning, RVA! It's 56 °F, and today looks wonderful and beautiful and great. Expect highs in the mid-to-upper 70s, plenty of sunshine, and lots of good vibes.

Water cooler

At 10:21 PM on Monday night, Richmond Police were called to the 1400 block of Clarkson Road where they found Bryant S. Jordan, 24, shot to death.

Yesterday, I talked about wanting to see the City and the State push against existing gun laws to see what they could get away with. This morning, I see that Graham Moomaw has an article about potential rule changes to rallies at the Lee Circle—which would include a gun ban! I just opened the paper and there it was! Read the whole thing for some other interesting rule ideas and for the really dumb hypothetical put forth by republican delegate Scott Lingamfelter.

#Pollchat continues! It's weird (or is it totally predictable?) that Confederate monuments have become a partisan issue. Here's another poll out of the CNU Wason Center which says 73% of Virginian Republicans see the Confederate monuments as symbols of Southern pride compared to only 25% of Democrats. 73%! Those dudes are what you're proud of? That's wild.

The City has set a date for the Monument Avenue Commission's next work session: November 14th, 7:30 PM, at the Library of Virginia. While this is a public meeting, it's not townhall-type situation. The Commission will go about their biz, trying to figure out the next phase of community engagement, and you're more than welcome to sit and watch them do that. Remember, you can always share you thoughts, feelings, and emotions with the Commission by filling out this form on their website.

I've got two transit events for your calendar this week! First, this Friday, I'll be speaking at St. Paul's Eyes on Richmond lunch series. I'll talk a little bit about Richmond's transit history, how it impacts our existing transit system, and how that, in turn, impacts people's lives. You should come! Second, also on Friday, the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement will host a bunch of smart folks for an open discussion about transit, shared spaces, and community cohesion. These two events take place at the exact same time so you can choose only one, but choose you must.

This morning's longread

It must be on a day when there has been no recent gun violence. So not today, and not tomorrow, and not the day after that. But someday. There is not a horrible Catch-22, where because there are not sensible gun laws, it is always too soon after a major gun tragedy to talk about sensible gun laws. No. There is a perfect moment that exists for such a conversation, just after the moment of silence and just before life resumes. If you slice time thinly enough you will find it, like plucking an atom of gold from the air. It lasts only a millisecond, but it is the right time, and words spoken then will not fall on deaf ears. (The discussion must be brief. Just a second too late and it will be the wrong time again.) But it is possible.